Environmental Contaminants Cleanup of Hazardous Waste

Shiprock Uranium Mill (San Juan River)

The now abandoned Shiprock uranium mill processed uranium ore from mines throughout Northwest New Mexico, dumping
tailings and process water into the riparian floodplain of the San Juan River. Tailings have been largely removed
from the floodplain and placed in an on-site disposal cell as part of the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Uranium Mill
Tailings Remedial Action (UMTRA) program. However, 1980's human-health based remediation did not fully consider
ecological risks to fish and wildlife, including the endangered Southwestern willow flycatcher. Today, with the
extensive technical input of Contaminants Biologists at the NMESFO, ecological concerns are now being addressed.
At our request, DOE completed a detailed ecological risk assessment of the site that revealed residual risks to
listed species and migratory birds. The DOE has agreed to address these risks, and to continue informal Section
7 Endangered Species Act consultation. Since initiation of this project, the same DOE group is now been tasked with
cleanup of the Atlas Mill site in Moab, Utah. The ecological expertise the DOE has gained working with the NMESFO
should help expedite an ecologically sound cleanup in Moab.